Two major lawsuits accusing the tech giant of anti-competitive behavior have arisen and the cost of damages entails a whopping 25 billion Euros, which is around 19.5 billion pounds.
The major governing bodies claim to have enough evidence that proves how Google has been involved in unfair practices that would be nothing less than abusing its leading position in today’s advertisement tech market.
Two separate cases have been filed, one from the Netherlands and the other linked to the UK and they’ll be making their way to the company soon, perhaps in the next two weeks. The move has been carried out by publishers who wish to seek compensation through the tech giant for its behavior.
But the news has also made so many other trust regulators aware and forced them to scrutinize Google further for such behavior after receiving all sorts of complaints. Hence, many anti-trust regulators have sprung into action ever since news about the lawsuits went viral.
The British wish to seek compensation from Google for websites portraying banner ads. And if they’re successful, it could mean a hugely diverse group gets compensated including the likes of the biggest names in the media industry and even those operating on a smaller scale that produces original content.
The report from the British Competition Tribunal also stated that anyone that does not wish to take part in the lawsuit may choose to opt-out. But many experts in the country feel the lawsuit is a must because it could be seeing the tech giant making an alteration to its practices.
Many people now have the feeling that Google is taking advantage of its leading position in the industry, especially when it comes down to ad technology. Hence, if not controlled at the right time, it could be extremely damaging as estimates of loss have stated to include nearly 7 billion pounds.
Those affected are some of the biggest names in the media industry that have huge readerships. At the same time, others that have been said to be affected include the likes of thousands of small-scale businesses that solely depend upon advertising as their main source of revenue. And when you actually come to think of it, these things don’t come easy or cheap.
Laying out content and then publishing it via blogs or websites is hard work so the anger is justified in this case against Google. The news comes as the UK’s watchdog for competition has also begun its investigations related to Google’s ad practices and its powerful role in the industry.
On the other hand, there is much chit-chat about the Dutch case. This has been stated as being open to so many publishers in the European market that has been affected by the search engine giant’s behavior.
It’s a collective claim sought out by law firms from the Netherlands such as Stek that have collaborated with Geradin Partners to bring out their case and reservations against Google.
They feel the case is important so that people that have been affected are rightly compensated and also so such behavior is prevented from occurring in the future.
Interestingly, both lawsuits are getting their funding from the UK’s litigation firm Harbour. It’s a private entity that pays legal expenses and assists in managing the associated costs and any risks associated. In return, they wish to get at least a fixed share of the amount received, when the case is successful.
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by Dr. Hura Anwar via Digital Information World
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